Butter on the endive is a place of memory and inspiration.

Once a gritty food blog by a talented young cook with an honest approach to writing, Butter on the Endive morphed into a Vancouver-based food events company, and is now a place to share the creative legacy of the late Owen Thomas Lightly.

Owen Lightly

His flashing eyes and quick and dry humour, his humbling presence and unassuming way: he was one of those humans you just wanted to be around.

BoTe beta

Looking back at Butter on the Endive (BOTE) and the sometimes zany, often whimsical, and always inspired piece of Vancouver's food culture.

behind the projects

Butter on the Endive after everything, what we want to share with you now, and why.

Cookbook

Kitchen keepsake

The cookbook: a keepsake for family, friends, and community

Any chef might cringe at publishing old recipes still in the process of refining and Owen was no exception: he was constantly honing his recipes and was committed to growing and learning with each passing season. But the goal with this cookbook is to share with you a bit of Owen's culinary passion, and have you keep a piece of Owen in your kitchen. With this keepsake cookbook expect to find some classic Chef Owen recipes that give you a sense of his style. Some recipes may or may not be in full. He would usually leave it up to you to add the most important ingredient. To be released later this year. Stay tuned!

Desolation Sound

Collected music by Owen Lightly on vinyl

Desolation Sound: music by Owen Lightly

Owen had a gift for songwriting. In his last year of his life, he sketched out rough demos of a burgeoning project idea which he called Desolation Sound. This collection of music was recorded in 2014 in Owen and Naomi's home with simple, one take iphone recording app. By it's ephemeral nature, music is most purely experienced the moment it's played; and this LP attempts to share Owen's creative process in the most raw form. You can sign up to buy the vinyl as soon as it's released, and have Desolation Sound on rotation at home by sending me a message here, and you can listen to the LP, and more of his music, here.

Ride with Team Butter on the Endive

Team Butter on the Endive is bringing together chefs, servers, bartenders, dishwashers and all other hospitality people by assembling a cycling team for those in the industry. Our aim is to bring the spirit of camaraderie and energy that is only found in our business to the streets. Team BOTE will be part of numerous events in the future, including fondos and organized rides. Our premier event for our inaugural season will be the The Ride To Conquer Cancer 2016: an organized, 2 day, 200km charity bike ride from Vancouver to Seattle. Follow the link and get connected with the team via FACEBOOK.